Owling In Fremont County

April 4-5, 2019

Richard Stevens:

Terry Michaels, four additional birders and I headed to some owling in Fremont County.

April 4

The temperature reached 71 degrees in Canon City this afternoon.  Winds were a steady 10 mph.

We stopped at Blue Heron Ponds south of Penrose but did not find the Long-tailed Ducks reported a few weeks ago.

Brush Hollow Wildlife Area was more exciting.  A Greater Roadrunner ran across the entrance road (CR 42) 50 yards north of CR 123 (Penrose 3rd street).

Then just before entering the Wildlife Area Jean spotted a Curve-billed Thrasher in the same field (west of CR 42).

A walk around the Wildlife Area was interesting.  A male Ladder-backed Woodpecker drummed below the dam.  

Two Juniper Titmice and a flock of eight Bushtits fluttered about the Junipers at the northwest corner of the property.

While we walked around the southeast corner a flock of twelve Pinyon Jays flew overhead.  They noisy call is quite distinctive!

No Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers could be found at Lakeside Cemetery, the MacKenzie brushpiles or Rouse Park.

A Rufous-crowned Sparrow was kind enough to pop out of the rocks at the Tunnel Drive trailhead!

We did not find our target bird (Spotted Owl) this night.  A Northern Saw-whet Owl responded to our recordings near Oro Juno.

April 5

It was a cooler 60 degrees in Canon City today.  Winds were a steady 6 mph most of the day.  

A unanimous vote decided a stay at a motel. 

In the morning, we checked the eastern entrance to the Royal Gorge.  No White-throated Swifts, Peregrine Falcons or Rosy Finches appeared this morning.

With time to spare, we decided to drive through Temple Canyon Park.  It really was too early for some of the birds that nest in the Park (Black-throated Gray Warblers, Gray Flycatchers, and Gray Vireos) but we gave it a try.

A Juniper Titmouse flew around the Junipers on the east side of the Arkansas River.  Four Violet-green Swallows surprised us.  The majority bird(s) were in a flock of 80 Pinyon Jays near the western entrance.

We again missed Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers at yesterday's locations.  No Kingbirds or Wood-pewees have arrived yet.

No Spotted Owls could be located tonight.  Although we did get a ping from our equipment, nothing came of it.

A Northern Pygmy-Owl was observed at Beaver Creek Wildlife Area when we passed on the drive back to Denver.